A federal judge on Thursday rejected Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s (R) plea to halt the enforcement of a cease-and-desist order issued by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D). The order demands that Blakeman revoke an executive order that effectively prohibits transgender women and girls from participating in female sports events.
Blakeman’s executive order, which went into effect on February 22nd, states that an individual’s gender is determined by their biological sex at birth. It also mandates that local athletic teams, leagues, and organizations must explicitly assign participation based on the sex assigned at birth, rather than gender identity.
During a news conference in February, Blakeman made it clear that the order does not aim to exclude transgender athletes from participating in all-boys or coed leagues. The restrictions imposed by the executive order are limited to over 100 public venues in Nassau County, encompassing parks, baseball fields, basketball courts, swimming pools, and ice rinks.
In a cease-and-desist letter dated March 1, James warned the county that if Blakeman’s order isn’t rescinded within five business days, decisive legal action will be taken. The order also prohibits county-run facilities from hosting sporting events that allow transgender girls to participate in accordance with their gender identity.
“The law is crystal clear: it is unacceptable to discriminate against an individual based on their gender identity or expression. In New York, we do not tolerate any form of hate or prejudice,” stated James in a news release.
According to the cease-and-desist letter, Blakeman’s order blatantly violates the New York State Human Rights Law. This law strictly prohibits any form of discrimination based on sex or gender identity/expression in places of public accommodation. Additionally, it unfairly singles out transgender women and girls, subjecting female sports teams to heightened scrutiny. James’s office emphasizes these concerning implications.
Blakeman took legal action in federal court against James and the state of New York after receiving the cease-and-desist order. Through a complaint filed on March 7, Blakeman represented a 16-year-old female volleyball player and her parents, seeking an injunction against the state’s human rights law enforcement on his executive order. The objective was to establish the lawfulness of his order.
District Judge Nusrat Jahan Choudhury denied Blakeman’s request on Thursday, stating that the county’s motion for a temporary restraining order did not meet the necessary requirements. Choudhury ruled that Blakeman and Nassau County are unlikely to succeed in their argument that James’s order violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
James’s office chose not to provide a comment regarding the ruling on Thursday. Blakeman, on the other hand, did not respond to a request for comment.
Top New York Democrats, who hold power in both the state Legislature and the governor’s office, have strongly criticized Blakeman’s executive order. The Long Island Roller Rebels, a women’s flat track roller derby league with at least one transgender member, filed a lawsuit against Nassau County last month with the support of the American Civil Liberties Union of New York.
